NAIROBI, Kenya — A three-judge bench of the Court of Appeal has dismissed an application by lawyer Harrison Kinyanjui seeking to suspend the delivery of judgment in the consolidated petitions challenging the impeachment of former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua.
The bench, comprising Justices Eric Ogola, Freda Mugambi, and Antony Murima, ruled on Monday, June 8, 2026, that the application lacked legal basis, noting that the matter raised by Kinyanjui’s client, Enock Aura, was procedurally distinct from the consolidated case pending judgment.
Kinyanjui had urged the court to halt or defer the reading of the judgment, arguing that related submissions in a separate application had not been fully heard.
“My lords and my lady, I filed an application at the Court of Appeal seeking to arrest the delivery of the judgment of the consolidated petitions,” he told the court.
He further asked the bench to defer the ruling, stating that his client should be heard before judgment was delivered.
“My lords and my lady, I suggest, in the constitutional authority of the Court of Appeal, that you defer the rendering of this judgment. We can be heard tomorrow because we filed some submissions,” he submitted.
However, the bench rejected the request, stating that no court order had been issued stopping the delivery of judgment and therefore there was no legal basis to suspend proceedings.
The judges emphasized that the application before them did not amount to a stay of judgment and that the Court of Appeal had not been directed to halt its ruling.
“We have made a decision that you will not misrepresent facts; the matter is not before us. The Court of Appeal has cited that matter. If they wanted to stop us, we would drop our pens,” the bench stated.
They added that any attempt to halt the ruling would require a formal order from the appellate court.
“Give us a court order from the Court of Appeal, then we’ll drop our pen. We don’t have anything like that,” the judges said.
The bench further noted that the applicant had previously sought to be removed from the consolidated proceedings and had already been granted that request.
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“You took yourself away from these petitions,” Justice Ogola said.
The court also clarified that directions had already been issued regarding the matter and that Kinyanjui’s application would instead be mentioned at a later date.
“We said your matter will be mentioned after today’s ruling. For the record, and this is the last comment we are making on this issue, your matter is coming for mention on June 18, 2026,” Justice Ogola added.
The ruling clears the way for the Court of Appeal to proceed with the delivery of judgment in the high-profile impeachment-related petitions, a case that has drawn significant national political and legal interest.
